The moment Daniel stepped onto the third floor, the first thing he felt was silence, not a calm silence, but one that sat on his shoulders like a heavy weight.
There was no wind here, no echoing sound. Even his own heartbeat felt slower.
The ground was made of black, polished stone, but deep within it there were cracks where a cold, silver light leaked out. It was a light with no life and no death… only persistence.
There was no ceiling. Above him stretched an endless dome that kept replaying repeating scenes of birth, collapse, destruction, and reconstruction.
At the center of this space stood the guardian. When Daniel's eyes landed on it, he was surprised, almost shocked, and found it interesting.
The reason for his shock was the guardian's form.
It was neither a monster nor a human. Its body was made of layers of gray-silver energy that constantly eroded and then repaired themselves.
